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March 5, 2018

Lenovo has introduced a new high-density server “tray” for high-performance computing (HPC) environments with the newest generation of water cooling technology it co-developed with a German HPC firm. Unlike your typical water-cooled system, where the water is chilled almost to a drinkable state, the ThinkSystem SD650 high-density server tray — so called because of its design and shape — is designed to operate using warm water, up to 122°F. By using warmer water, Lenovo claims it will lower power consumption 30 to 40 percent compared to traditional air cooling methods.

With the release of Microsoft Windows Server 2016 a couple years ago, Microsoft directly entered the hyperconverged infrastructure (HCI) platform space that has been served by organizations like Nutanix, Scale, Cisco, HP, Dell, and others — only Microsoft comes at it with a fully software-defined platform rather than hardware and applicances.

The author contends that there are three key acronyms that have topped the agenda in banking technology discussions in recent years - APIs, PSD2 (Payment Services Directive II) and DLT (Distributed Ledger Technology). Although DLT is challenging these other concepts for media interest, the technology is still in its infancy and not yet powerful or cost-effective enough to justify its implementation within mainstream banking - particularly as a replacement for the core banking systems currently in place. APIs and PSD2 however, will continue to dominate the banking agenda this year and beyond.

The standard uptime requirement consistently approaches 99 percent or higher for most financial institutions, and there are many variables that can affect this number: Preventive maintenance checks; a steady supply of the correct parts in the field; and technicians properly located in the field are all extremely important. If service tech satisfaction isn't No. 1 on the list of uptime essentials, it is certainly up there.

ATMIA has published a paper for its members on defending against ATM jackpotting. The new publication, Defending against Jackpotting, which was compiled by a leading ATM security consultant, Douglas Russell, with inputs from law enforcement agencies and members, also recommends forming close ties with law enforcement agencies to share information and best practices. The manual describes a variety of attacks which can lead to jackpotting and then recommends the risk mitigation measures required to stifle and block the criminals.

The majority of consumers, or 69% of the 3,095 U.S. adults surveyed, reported that they were comfortable researching loan options online, the Fiserv Expectations & Experiences: Borrowing and Wealth Management study found. Only 27% of participants cited that they were comfortable researching loan options on their smartphone, however, indicating that more complex financial activities may still be left to digital channels rather than mobile. Millennials were the outlier, naturally, with nearly half (49%) of those surveyed indicating that they would be comfortable doing loan research via mobile, compared to their peers.

Misconfiguration ranks as the most common type of vulnerability discovered in real-world penetration tests, according to a newly published study. In client engagements last year, pen-testing-as-a-service provider Cobalt found mostly misconfiguration, followed by cross-site scripting (XSS), authentication and session, exposure of sensitive data, and access control-type vulnerabilities in applications. Finding flaws is one thing, but fixing them is another. Redirect and forward-type flaws sit unresolved the longest of any category, 41 days, while server-side request forgery, sensitive data exposure, SQL injection, and others, including business logic, get fixed most rapidly.

Aricent, a global design and engineering company, announced the launch of its Highly Automated Vulnerability Assessment Orchestration Containers (HAVOC) framework. The San Francisco-based company claims that their new platform manages cyber risk by catching significant security vulnerabilities before they are exploited.

Artificial intelligence and social media are gradually becoming household names in modern day marketing. Both technologies are rapidly taking over the world of marketing, knocking out most traditional methods of advertising like pamphlets, TV and newspaper ads. This article looks at 6 ways that Artificial Intelligence is transforming social media marketing.

Gig workers are slated to represent roughly 43 percent of the U.S. workforce by 2020, the demand for more efficient payment solutions is poised to grow. These gig-generation workers are driving a greater issuance of debit cards than credit cards. One FI is hoping to tap into this market with a checking account-based cash back program that disburses earnings into cardholders’ checking accounts within 24 hours.

A 4-year-old Seattle-based technology startup called Switch has launched an application programming interface called CardSavr that automatically notifies merchants when issuers re-issue cards with new credentials. Issuers integrate the API, but merchants need do no programming work, according to Switch.

Dynamics has introduced enhanced functionality for its connected Wallet Card that allows two-way communication between FIs and cardholders via the card's telecommunications connection. The company says that this creates new opportunities for communication and value:

* Verify purchases— If an FI suspects a fraudulent purchase using an existing card, they can ask a consumer to verify on their card that they made a particular purchase and the consumer can quickly respond.

* Offer on-the-spot credit limit increase — Rather than declining a transaction, the FI can ask a consumer if they would like to increase the credit limit on their card.

* Add cards — If the FI believes a consumer might benefit from a new card offering, they can ask if the cardholder would like to download the new card immediately.

* Upgrade cards — The FI can ask a consumer if they would like to upgrade their card to one that has additional features or value

CenturyLink recently surpassed AT&T as the largest domestic U.S. Ethernet carrier, and the service provider plans to advance its status further by using its SDN-based architecture to fuel a new set of services and cloud options for business customers. Building upon its existing Ethernet portfolio, CenturyLink plans to release a new E-LAN service later this year. This new service will be supported by new 100G links on its backbone.

Kore.ai announced the release of Bots Platform 6.1 version which has features for supporting bot-to-bot communication via universal bots, enabling better natural language processing (NLP), facilitating deeper understanding of bot performance, and delivering greater efficiencies in terms of handling multiple intents in a single sentence or more intuitive user interface. In addition, the platform now supports 22 digital, IVR and voice assistant channels – so a single bot defined once can be instantly deployed across all channels with channel specific configurations as needed.